The present invention relates to a bracket which is attachable to a ladder for holding paint cans, tools and the like.
It is difficult when working on a ladder to carry and hold tools, brushes, and/or materials. For example, when a person stands upon one of the rungs of a ladder to paint the side of a structure, it is necessary to hold the paint can in one hand and the brush in the other, all the while maintaining one's balance on the ladder. This is tiring and difficult to do especially over long periods of time. It would not be unusual for a person so situated to drop the brush or spill paint from the can. This leads to unwanted and messy stains which must be cleaned up.
Various devices have been proposed for attachment to a ladder to assist the user in supporting a paint can or in holding tools. Many of these devices are designed to fit or clamp around central portions of one or more of the ladder rungs. When in place, these devices cover at least a portion of a rung that is located above the rung on which the user is standing. If the user wishes to ascend further up the ladder, such passage may be blocked, or at least made more difficult, by the installed device. The device might first have to be removed from the ladder to allow the user to proceed further up the ladder.
Other object holding accessories for a ladder are installed by inserting at least a portion of the accessory into one end of one of the rungs of a hollow rung ladder. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,259,525 to Wion shows a paint can holder having a handle or support arm that fits inside a hollow ladder rung. A wedge can be pounded in to wedge or lock the support arm in place.
Some ladder accessory devices are supported on brackets that fit around a side rail of the ladder. For example, one such device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,967,264 to Peterson which discloses a U-shaped bracket having an adjustable width to be engaged with the side rail of a ladder. The Peterson device includes a paint can holder and a tray holder which are attachable to the bracket.
However, what is needed is a bracket support which is easily engageable with and slidably movable along a vertical side rail of a ladder.